Clinical value of mean corpuscular volume and red blood cell volume distribution width in the diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia during pregnancy

Objective To evaluate the value of combined measurement of mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and red blood cell volume distribution width (RDW) in the diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia during pregnancy.Methods Hemoglobin concentration (HGB), MCV, RDW, serum iron concentration (Fe), total iron binding capacity (TIBC) and transferring saturation percentage (TS%) were simultaneously measured in 605 pregnant women at prenatal examination. According to detective results, the 605 subjects were divided into IDA group (n=68), other anemia group (n=57) and healthy control group (n=480).Results RDW increased and MCV decreased significantly in iron deficiency anemia group compared with that of other anemia group (P0.01).There were no significant differences of MCV and RDW between control group and other anemia group.Conclusion Low MCV and high RDW were the characteristic changes of iron deficiency anemia during pregnancy. Combined measurement of RDW and MCV contributes to the differential diagnosis of IDA during pregnancy.